Electric railway.



No. 71s 069. PATENTED JAN. 1a 190s.

P. M. ASHLEY.

BLEGTRIG RAILWAY.

A'PPLICATVION FILED PEB. 26, 189B.

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l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK M. ASHLEY, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 718,069, dated January 13, 1903.

Application filed February 26. 1898. Serial No. 671,791. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK M. ASHLEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, county of Kings, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Railways, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to electric railways, the object being to provide a construction for whatis known as a surface-contact77 system Vin which the action will be positive, the escape of current reduced to a minimum, and which involves apparatus cheap to construct.

The invention consists in the combination and arrangement of apparatus hereinafter described and claimed. 1

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l illustrates a general plan of the apparatus and circuits constituting my invention. Fig. 1a is a similar illustration of a modification of my invention. Fig. 2 isa cross-section of the road-bed, and Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a circuit-closing box.

Referring to Fig. l, A represents the tracks upon which the vehicles run. B is a dynamo or generating-station supplying current to the system over the main-line conductor or feeder h and returnconductor b. These conductors extend along the roadway, and both are thoroughly insulated at all points. Between the tracks and upon the surface of the roadway are arranged two rows of contactheads or service or power conductor sections c c c, dac., and d d d, &c. Alternating with the heads c c c, dmc., are supplemental heads c' c' c', dac. I prefer to make the heads or switch-energizing conductor-sections c c c form the covers of hoxesM, (shownin Fig. 3,) containing a switch mechanism controlling the circuit to the head or cover, as will be hereinafter described. The heads c and d of each row are arranged in pairs opposite each other, as shown. The car will be equipped with a motor E and with two contact-shoes e and e. These shoes will respectively make contact with the two rows of heads c c' and d. The forward ends of these shoes are abreast of each other; but the rear end of the shoe e extendsbackwardfar enough to enable the shoe to he in contact with four of the heads c c at once. The shoes will preferably be constructed of magnetic material, and the posts f, which support them, will also be of magnetic material and will be surrounded by coils of wire which when a current passes through them will convert the shoe into an electromagnet, one of the poles of which will be the face of the shoe. The switch-box (shown in Fig. 3) contains a solenoid s, the movable core s of whichis provided with a copper contact-piece s2, which is adapted to connect with a similar contact-piece s3, xed to the under side of the cover c of the box, to which the solenoid is also attached. The said. solenoid acts as a meansfor eifecting the preliminary excitation or magnetization of the movable switch-contact or core s'. The `so lenoid s, together with the movable core s' and the switch-contacts s2 and s3, constitutes an electromagnetic contact device or contacting electromagnet. `The core is flexibly connected with a conductor l, hereinafter referred to, and the solenoid is in a circuit 2. One of these switch-boxes is located at each of the heads c and d. The boxes themselves are supported upon crossties T, as shown in Fig.2.

The circuits are asofollows: From the main conductor h a branch wire 1 leads into each of the switch-boxes controlling the heads c o, dro., and when the cores of the solenoids in said boxes are lifted to their highest limit they are in contact with'the heads, and so the latter become the terminals of the circuit.

From the return-conductor b a branch wire 3 leads into each switch-box d and connects in the same manner with the solenoid-core therein. From the supplemental heads c' wires 2 lead first around the solenoid in the switchbox c immediately in front of it, thence around the solenoid in the switch-box d, located opposite to the box c, and thence to the returnconductor, thus putting the two solenoids in series with each other. The coils uponthe collecting-shoes, which are used to convert them into electromagnets, are connected together by a wire 4,'which is connected at one end with the shoe e,making contactwith the heads c, and at the other end-with the shoe e' or the car-circuit leading thereto,which makes contact with the heads d. A resistance r may IOO be inserted in this circuit to prevent too much current flowing therein.

In operation the system acts as follows: Assuming the system to be in operation and a car to be in the position indicated by the shoes in Fig. 1, the current passes from the main b by wire 1 and the core of the solenoid to the head c, thence by the brush or contact-shoe by wire 5 to the motor, thence by wire 6 to the other contact-shoe, to the head d, solenoidcore, and wire 3 to the return-conductor b'. At the first shoe the current branches, a portion passing through the rear head c' and thence through the wire 2 and its two solenoids to the returnconductor. Another portion travels through the forward head c and thence by wire 2 through the two solenoids c and d to the return-conductor b, and another portion travels through the circuit 4, which includes the coils upon the shoes, converting them into electromagnets. As very little current is required to hold the switches in their closed positions, the electromagnetic shoe alone serves to keep the switches closed after the shoe has left one of the conductors c, thus furnishing a means adapted to fulfil the conditions of a larger amount of energy at first and a less amountafterward. The heads c and d immediately forward of the shoes are energized the moment the shoe e engages with the preceding supplemental head c', because then the circuit through wire 2 is closed. When the shoe itself strikes the head and is receiving current from it, the magnetism of the shoe also aids in holding the circuit closed. Until the shoes do strike the heads c and d ahead it is desirable to insure a maintenance of the circuit through the heads c and d with which the shoes are in contact, and for that purpose one of the shoes, as before described, is extended rearwardly a sufficient distance to retain contact with the rearward supplemental head until the forward ends ot' the shoes strike the heads c and dimmediately in front. If the shoes are magnetized, this rearward extension is not essential, although the same operation takes place irrespective of the length of the shoe. Thus the magnetization of the shoe permits a shorter shoe to be used, or with a shoe of the same length a much smaller number of conductorsections and switches, which is of great practical importance.

The system may be operated with or without the magnetic coils upon' the shoes; but when used without them it is an absolute necessity that a rearward extension to one of the shoes be provided.

In the system shown in Fig. liL the returncircuit is through the rails and a single shoe only is used, this shoe having the rearward extension.

It is well known that a sectional conductor-rail is the equivalent of rows of contact heads or studs, and the terms power conductor-sections and switch-energizing conductor-sections used herein are intended to cover such equivalent.

Having thus described my invention, I claiml. In an electric-railway system, the combination of main and return conductors,two sets of sectional working conductors or heads, branches from the main conductors to the sets of sectional conductors or heads respectively, electromagnetic cut outs in said branches, the coils of the cut-outs in corresponding branches of the two sets being electrically connected in series with each other, substantially as described.

2. In an electric-railway system, the combination of a main circuit, a series of working heads or sectional conductors, branch conductors connecting the heads with the main circuit, electromagnetic cut outs in said branch circuits, a series of supplemental heads or sections alternating with said working heads and forming the terminals of circuits controlling said cut-outs respectively, and a collecting device carried by a car and capable of bridging two working heads and two supplemental heads at once, for the purpose set forth.

3. In an electric railway, a cut-out and box, the cover of which is an exposed head in the roadway, a solenoid in the boX attached to the cover and having a movable core connected with the main circuit and adapted to make contact with the box-cover, substantially as described.

4. The combination with line conductors, of contact-heads normally disconnected therefrom, an auxiliary contact-head havinga continuous connection with one line conductor, and adapted to be connected with the other line conductor, solenoid-coils in the continuous connection in proximity to said contactheads, and cores for said coils connected with the line conductors.

5. The combination with line conductors and sectional working conductors, of connections between the former and the sections of the latter, electromagnetic switches in said connections, a contact device carried by the car, adapted to connect the magnet-windings with the line-circuit, and to collect current from said working conductors, said contact device being also constructed as an electromagnet to coperate with the switch-magnet coils to control said switches.

6. In an electric-railway system, the combination with line conductors and sectional working conductors, connections between the former and the sections of the latter, electromagnetic switches in said connections, and a magnetic contact device carried by the car adapted to simultaneously maintain one of said switches closed by its own magnetism and to make connection to close an advance switch.

7. In an electric railway, the combination with the feeder, of power conductor-sections,

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switches adapted to connect the latter with the former, switch-energizing conductor-sections, magnet-coils connected with the latter for actuating the switches, and means carried by the car for sending current through said energizing-sections and for exerting a coperating magnetic attraction directly upon said switches, and for continuing to exert said attraction after the coils are open-circuited.

8. In an electric railway, the` combination with the feeder, of power conductor-sections, switches adapted to connect the latter with the former, switch-energizing conductor-sectionshmagnet-coils connected with the latter for actuating the switches, and a magnetic collector carried by the car for cooperating with said energizingsections and coils to actuate the switches, and for holding the switches closed after the coils are open-circuited.

9. In an electric railway, the combination with the feeder, of power conductor-sections, switches for connecting the latter with the former, switch-energizing conductor-sections, each one of which is located in the same line with and between successive power-sections, coils, each of which is connected in shunt to the car-motors with an energizing-section and ground, and is adapted to actuate one of said switches, and a single car-collector adapted to engage the single line of switch-energizing and power conductorsections and which, when it bridges a live power-section and an energizing-section, causes the switch of an advance power-section to be closed.

10. In an electric railway, the combination with the feeder, of power-sections, switches for connecting the latter with the former, electromagnet-coils for actuating the switches and connected in shunts to the return around the car-motors, switch-energizing conductorsections connected with the coils and located in alinement with the power-sections, and each one of which is located between two adjacent pow'er-sections, and a collector carried by the car adapted to engage with the power and energizing conductor-sections, and which when it connects one of the power-sections when it is alive, with the adjacent energizingsection, causes the switch of the next powersection in advance, to be closed by shunting a portion of the current on its way to the switch closed after it has left the energizingsection.

12. In an electric railway, the combination with the feeder, of power conductor-sections, electromagnetic switches for connecting the latter with the former, switch-energizingsections connected through the switch-coils with the return, each one of which'sections lies between two adjacent power-sections, a collector carried by the car, which, when it bridges one of the two power-sections when it is alive, and the energizing-section, causes the switch of the other power-section of the two to be closed, and a ground-shunt from the collector, which is wound to magnetize the latter, whereby the said switch is held closed after the collector has left the energizing-section.

13. In an electric railway, the combination with the mains, of positive power and negative return sectional service-conductors, electromagnetic switches for connecting the mains with the respective service-conductors, switch-energizing conductor-sections,and two coils in series with each other and in shunt around the car-motors to return and connected with one of said energizing conductor-sections and the negative main, and adapted to actuate the two switches which control corresponding power and return sections.

14. In an electric railway, the combination with the main feeder-circuit, of service conductor-sections normally disconnected therefrom, contacting electromagnets the moving parts of which serve as switch-pieces for connecting said service-sections with the main, and a collector carried by the vehicle to connect the motors with the successive service conductor-sections, the coil of each electromagnct being energized to connect its servicesection with the main through its moving part, by a current owing through a circuit including an auxiliary conductor normally cut out of circuit, but in continuous connection therewith while the vehicle is passing over that section.

15. In an electric railway, the combination with the main feeder-circuit, of service conductor-sections normally disconnected therefrom, electromagnet-switches for connecting the latter with the former, said service-sections consisting of portions formed integral with the electromagnets, and a collector carried by the vehicle for connecting the motors with the successive service-sections.

16. In an electric railway, the combination with the main feeder-circuit, of the service conductor sections normally disconnected therefrom, electromagnets having moving parts which form switch-pieces for connecting said service-sections with the main, said service-sections having portions formed integral with the electromagnets, and a collector carried by the vehicle for connecting the motors with the successive service-sections.

17. In an electric railway, the combination with the main feeder-circuit, of service con- IIO ductor-sections normally disconnected therefrom, contacting electromagnets having moving parts which form switch-pieces for connecting said service-sections with the main, said service-sections having portions formed integral with the electromagnets, and a collector carried by the vehicle to connect the motors with the successive service conductorsections, the coil of each electromagnet being energized to connect its service-section with the main through its moving part, by a current flowing through a circuit, including an auxiliary conductor normally disconnected from the main circuit, but in continuous connection therewith while the vehicle is passing over that service-section.

18. Acontactsystem embodying conductorsections adapted to be connected with the main or feeder, conductor-sections having connections with the return, and contacting electromagnets,the coils of which are included in said return connections.

19. A contacting electromagnet operatively connected with circuit connections of which it constitu tes a terminal, in combination with means for effecting the preliminary excitation or magnetization thereof, said means comprising the actuating-coil of said magnet which is connected in a shunt-circuit, sectional working conductors, a feeder, an armature electrically connected with said feeder, and means independent of said first-mentioned means for effecting the magnetization of said magnet.

20. In an electric railway, the combination with the feeder, of a normally dead sectional service-conductor, the sections of which are located in alinement, connections from alternate sections successively throughout its length, one to the feeder, the next in'shunt around the car-motors to the return, and the next to feeder, &c., switches for the feeder connections, coils in the return connections for operating said switches, and a collector carried by the car adapted to engage all the sections of said service-conductor.

21. In an electric railway, the combination with the feeder, of a normally dead sectional service-conductor,alternate sections throughout the length thereof being connected, one to the feeder, the next to the return through a shunt to the car-motors, and the next to feeder, &c., switches in the feeder connections for connecting the alternate sections of the sectional service-conductor directly to the feeder, switch-coils in the return connections, and a collector connected to one side of the car-motor and engaging the sections of said sectional service-conductor, and which, when it engages with any of the sections which are connected to the return, causes a current to be shunted through the return connection to close the switch of the section next in advance of the collector.

22. A contacting-electromagnet terminal,

the coil of which is included in a shunt-circuit and the core or armature of which constitutes a terminal of a feeder-circuit and is adapted to be actuated in one direction by current flow- -ing through said shunt and in the other direction by gravitation immediately after the current is cut off from said coil.

23. A contact system embodying a sectional working conductor, and a contacting electromagnet forming the terminal of a branch feeder, in combination with an energizing-coil therefor which is connected in a shunt-circuit between one section of the working conductor and a track-rail or return.

24. A contact system embodying a powerconductor and a switch-energizing conductor, a magnet member connected with one of said conductors; a contacting electromagnet having .circuit connections therewith, and a coil connected with the other of said conductors and a track or return rail.

25. A contact system embodying sectional working conductors; a stationary magnet member connected with one member thereof; a movable magnet member` having circuit connections therewith; a magnet-coil connected with the other member of said working conductors and with atrack or return rail, and a current-collector or trolley-shoe carried by the vehicle, said current-collector being adapted to bridge or span the working conductors and to close the circuit through the coil in such manner as to lift the movable magnet member into contact with the stationary magnet member, and close the supplycircuit through the other member of the working conductors.

26. Acontactsystem provided with aswitchbox or receptacle, a contacting electromagnet member movably mounted therein, an actuating-coil for said electromagnet member connected with an auxiliary working conductor and a track or return rail in such a manner as to lift said contacting electromagnet member into contact with the inner surface of the switch-box or receptacle.

27. A contact system provided with a switchbox or receptacle, and an electromagnet member movably mounted therein, said member having circuit connections with a source of current-supply, and a coil connected with an auxiliary working conductor and adapted to lift said member into contact with the inner surface of said receptacle, and to close the source of current-supply thereto.

28. A contact system provided with a switchbox or receptacle, an electromagnet member movably mounted therein, said member having a coil for effecting the preliminary excitation or magnetization thereof, and exible connections between it and the source of current-supply, said electromagnet member having a free and independent movement under the influence of the energizing-current and gravity respectively.

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29. An electric-railway system, which has a return connections contain coils for actuating single sectional conductor comprising powersaid switches. To sections and switch-energizing sections which In Witness whereof have hereunto set my are respectivelyarranged alternately in alinehand this 13th day of November, 1897.

ment; switches which connect the poWer-sec- FRANK M. ASHLEY. tions directly with the feeder or main, and Witnesses: return connections in shunt to the car-motors WM. A. ROSENBAUM,

from the switch-energizing sections, which HARRY BAILEY. 

